Is Jason Witten Angling to Become the New Dallas Cowboys Head Coach?
Jason Witten has expressed an interest in coaching in the NFL but refused to answer when asked about coaching the Dallas Cowboys. | Credit: Tom Pennington/Getty Images/AFP
- Jason Witten retired following the 2017 season but then made a comeback after one year off at the behest of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
- His MNF gig was not going well, so maybe coming back to football served as a retirement reboot, a way to regain his good name before retiring again.
- He recently stated he wants to get into coaching at the NFL level when he retires next.
Jason Witten did not need the money when he decided to come out of retirement. He had a great job in the MNF booth for ESPN. His performance was widely panned, but at least he wasn’t getting hit by linebackers anymore.
From the outside looking in, life appeared to be good. So, why did he come back?
Apparently, he missed the game, still had the fire, felt like he had something left—blah, blah, blah. Name the cliché, and he used it during his un-retirement press conference (he answers the question why during the first couple of minutes):
Did we expect him to say because the MNF gig wasn’t working out, and he needed a retirement reset? Of course, not—but that is what he is getting. He may or may not retire again once the season ends, but we do know what he wants to do next.
He wants to coach—in the NFL.
Witten did not say he wanted to be a head coach right off the bat. He did not specify any capacity or team. He just said that he wants to coach in the NFL like many players have before him and will after him.
So—how are we making the leap to Witten going from tight end to head coach?
When No Answer Gives The Wrong Answer
Speculation ran rampant earlier in the week after Witten was asked a question he didn’t want to answer during a press conference. It wasn’t anything crazy, unprofessional, or inappropriate—just whether he would be interested in being the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys someday.
No one said tomorrow, next season, or anytime soon. The reporter just asked if he was interested—and rather than answer the question, he walked out.
Hmmm…now why on Earth would he do that?
Why not just say something like, “Sure, someday down the road, maybe.” He had just finished talking about getting into coaching in the NFL and what a great job coaching the Cowboys would be. He had to know the question was coming.
So, why not answer it? Maybe he has already had those talks with Jerry Jones?
But Would Jerry Jones Do Something That Crazy?
Maybe part of Jason Witten’s master plan was to prove he’s loyal to Jones. With how Jones values loyalty, he may be crazy enough to hire Witten as the next head coach. After all, Jones did hire two former backup quarterbacks in the last couple of years as coaches (Kellen Moore and Jon Kitna).
But to make the leap from tight end to head coach? Even Jones isn’t that crazy. Right?
Then again, Jones drafted Quincy Carter, he traded for Drew Henson, Joey Galloway, and Roy Williams, chased Jimmy Johnson out the door, and has refused to fire a tragically mediocre Jason Garrett.
Jones has made a name for himself by making some of the most ridiculous and absurd personnel moves in sports. So why not add elevating his tight end to head coach to the list?
